You’re probably tired of us telling you that Victoria real estate has set new records, right? Well, we wouldn’t blame you if you were. It was another crazy ride last month with lingering low inventory, plentiful buyers, and stress on both sides of the fence.
Keep in mind, though, when comparing this April’s numbers versus last April’s that it isn’t a straight-across comparison, due to the still low numbers from the city trying to calibrate to the arrival of Covid.
Even Victoria Real Estate Board (VREB) President David Langlois agrees: “Comparing last year’s April market to 2021 does not provide us any real insight into long-term market trends. Instead of comparing to last year’s numbers, we need to look at years before the pandemic to see how April 2021 compares to average.”
Victoria Real Estate Market Continues to Chug Along
last month’s numbers
- 1,116 properties sold in April 2021
- ↑ 288.9 per cent over April 2020
- ↓ 4.9 per cent over March 2021
- 331 condos sold
- ↑ 353.4 per cent over April 2020
- ↓ 12.2 per cent over March 2021
- 564 single-family homes sold
- ↑ 246 per cent over April 2020
- ↓ 1.7 per cent over March 2021
The biggest issue remains lack of inventory. Normally, we should see over 3,000 listings in the Greater Victoria area. But last month we saw just 1,454 active listings on the MLS® system. That is a 36.9 per cent decrease over April 2020 and an 11-per-cent increase over March 2021.
moving forward into the summer market
It seems like maybe another shift is on our doorstep, though. Buyer fatigue has settled in and more sellers are eager to take advantage of this sellers’ market. However, as the scales of demand shift, we could start to see buyers with more options and sellers with fewer unconditional, over-asking offers. Of course, none of us has a crystal ball to guide us, but I think we can all agree (except maybe some really happy sellers) that we want to see a bit more of a balanced market.
However, that isn’t always the easiest thing, explains Langlois. “Our market is based on supply and demand and there is a disconnect right now with record low supply and high demand. […] Desire for homes in a certain market can erupt quickly, while building homes takes years. These realities make it hard to bring out market into balance.
Efforts by government to dampen demand by making home ownership more expensive through taxes and borrowing limitations do not bring balance. Municipal governments adding costs and time delays to new developments do not bring balance.”
MLS Benchmark Value increases
The MLS® Home Price Index benchmark value for a single-family home in the Victoria core was $996,500 in April 2021. That shows a 12.6 per cent increase over April 2020 and a 2.9 per cent increase over March 2021. For a condo, the benchmark value was $547,600, and that shows a 2.6 per cent increase over April 2020 and a 3.6 per cent increase over March 2021.
To read the full statistics package, you can find it here: www.vreb.org/current-statistics.
As it stands, buyers are slowly gaining a little bit of traction in the market. Offers are being accepted with conditions, and buyers are competing only against one other offer instead of 17, or maybe not competing at all! We know that will probably come as a sigh of relief for the strained buyers looking to make a real estate move.
If you’re at all thinking of buying or selling right now, let’s talk. You can take advantage of our extensive professional network to help you make the best moves possible. Even if it’s just to bounce some questions off, we’re here for you.
Until next time!
Kaley, Mike & Rodney